Compare Florida Loan Programs

Q: What's the difference between FHA, Conventional, and VA at a glance?

FHA is government-insured, lenient on credit (580+), 3.5% down, but the mortgage insurance stays for the life of the loan and there's a 1.75% upfront funding fee. Best for lower-credit buyers and multi-unit purchases. Conventional needs better credit (620+) but PMI drops automatically at 78% LTV — cheaper long-term if you have decent credit. VA requires veteran or active-duty eligibility. $0 down, no monthly MI, only an upfront funding fee. Almost always the best deal if you're eligible. The comparison table breaks down all three side-by-side — filter or sort to see how the numbers stack up for your situation.

All 12 Black Rock Mortgage programs in one filterable view. Credit floors, down payments, who each is built for, who fits which buyer. No popups, no email gate — just the math, side-by-side.

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All 12 Programs, One View

FHA, Conventional, VA, USDA, Jumbo, DSCR, Hometown Heroes, and the rest — every Black Rock program side-by-side instead of scattered across 12 pages.

Filter to Your Match

Set your credit range, down payment, buyer type, property type. The table narrows to programs that actually fit. No more guessing which page applies.

Decide, Then Dig Deeper

Click any program for full eligibility, requirements, and how to apply. Or call us — we run scenarios across 200+ wholesale lenders for free.

Compare Florida Loan Programs Side-by-Side

Every Black Rock Mortgage program at a glance — credit minimums, down payment, loan limits, who it’s built for. Filter by what you bring to the table; sort to see how programs stack up.

Your credit

Down payment available

Buyer type

Property type

12 programs shown

Program	Min Credit ▲▼	Min Down ▲▼	Loan Limit ▲▼	Mortgage Insurance	Max DTI	Best For	Key Advantage

Loan limits, credit floors, and MI factors reflect Black Rock Mortgage’s current published guidelines (May 2026). FHA county limits and conforming limits update annually — see our Florida county loan limits tool for live values. Final approval depends on full underwriting.

How to Use This Comparison

Start with the filters. The chips at the top narrow the table to programs that actually apply to your situation — pick the credit chip closest to your score, the down payment you have available, your buyer type, and the kind of property you’re after. The table reflows in real time. If a filter combination shows zero programs, loosen one chip; the empty state will tell you so.

Sort by clicking any of the column headers — minimum credit, minimum down payment, or loan limit. That’s useful when you’re trying to see which program has the lowest barrier on a specific dimension (lowest credit floor, smallest down payment, etc.). Click “Details” on any row to jump to the full program page with eligibility, MI structure, scenarios, and our usual long-form FAQ.

On mobile, the table becomes a card stack — same data, easier to scroll through. Filters and sort still work the same way.

Why Comparing Programs Matters in Florida

The “best” mortgage in Florida isn’t a universal answer — it depends on your credit, your down payment capacity, where you’re buying, what you’re buying, and how you earn your income. Two buyers with the same income and the same target home can end up in completely different programs.

A first-time buyer with a 600 score and $5K saved usually fits FHA at 3.5% down, often with Hometown Heroes layered on for $35K of assistance. A self-employed business owner with strong deposits but heavy write-offs usually does better on a bank statement loan than the conventional their CPA’s net income would qualify them for. A veteran with $0 down should almost never use anything other than VA. A real estate investor buying a rental for cash flow uses DSCR, not personal income docs. A buyer in a rural Florida county should check USDA before anything else — $0 down with lower MI than FHA.

The wrong program can cost tens of thousands over the life of the loan. The right one can unlock a down payment you didn’t know you had. Our first job is figuring out which program fits — not selling you the one that pays us best.

Common Florida Loan Program Scenarios

If you don’t want to filter — here are the typical buyer profiles and the program we’d usually start with:

First-time buyer, modest credit, small down payment → start with FHA + check eligibility for Hometown Heroes (up to $35K assistance).
First-time buyer, strong credit, want lowest MI long-term → First-Time Buyer Conventional at 1–3% down with reduced PMI that drops at 78% LTV.
Veteran or active duty → VA. $0 down, no monthly MI, ever. Almost always the right answer if you’re eligible.
Buying in rural Florida → check USDA first. $0 down + lower MI than FHA. Income limits and property eligibility apply.
Self-employed with significant write-offs → Bank statement or 1-year tax return. Qualify on real income, not your 1040 net.
Real estate investor buying rentals → DSCR. No personal income docs, qualify on the property’s cash flow, close in an LLC if you want.
Florida luxury or high-cost area, loan above conforming → Jumbo. Up to $4M standard, $15M with exception, alternative income docs available.
Building new construction → One-Time Close Construction. One closing instead of two. Pairs with FHA, VA, or conventional.
Buying a manufactured / mobile home → Manufactured Home Financing. Singlewides welcome; works with FHA, VA, USDA, conventional.
Existing homeowner tapping equity without refi → HELOC. Keep your first mortgage in place; AVM appraisal common.

Most real-world scenarios end up touching two or three programs before we land on the right one. Send us your situation; we’ll run the math.

What This Comparison Can’t Tell You

A side-by-side table is a great starting point, but it’s not a final answer. Honest about the limits:

It can’t see your full credit profile. The minimum credit floor is the published guideline — your actual approval depends on what’s on your full report (recent late payments, charge-offs, balances, mix). Two buyers at 620 don’t always get the same answer.
It doesn’t model interest rates. Rates depend on your credit, the program, the property type, current market, and lock period. We quote your real rate at pre-approval, not on a comparison page.
It can’t apply DPA programs automatically. Hometown Heroes, county DPA programs, and forgivable grants can change the down payment math significantly — but they require eligibility checks the table can’t do for you.
It doesn’t show compensating factors. Strong reserves, long job history, low credit utilization, or co-borrowers can stretch DTI ceilings beyond the listed floors. Lenders weigh the whole file, not just one column.
Loan limits update annually. FHA county limits and conforming limits change each year. The values shown reflect Black Rock Mortgage’s current published guidelines — for live county-level lookups, see our Florida county loan limits tool.

Use this comparison as a directional guide. Then send us your scenario — we run it across 200+ wholesale lenders and tell you the actual answer, including programs you might not realize you qualify for. The table gets you close. A pre-approval gets you exact.

Loan Program Comparison FAQ

Almost always, yes — and that’s the point of comparing. A first-time buyer with 660 credit might qualify for FHA, conventional, and First-Time Buyer Conventional. A veteran might qualify for VA and conventional and FHA. The question isn’t usually “do I qualify?” — it’s “which one is best for my situation?” That depends on down payment, MI cost, loan limit, and seller concessions allowed. We model two or three programs side-by-side and pick the cheapest path to closing for your scenario.

Yes — and you should if you’re eligible. Hometown Heroes is a Florida down payment assistance program that stacks on top of an underlying loan (typically FHA, VA, USDA, or conventional). It can contribute up to $35,000 toward your down payment and closing costs. Same idea for many county DPA programs and seller concessions. The comparison table shows the base programs in isolation; we layer assistance on top during pre-approval to get you to your actual cash-to-close.

Not necessarily. The credit minimums in this comparison are our standard published floors. With strong compensating factors — long job history, large reserves, no late payments in 12 months, low credit utilization — we can sometimes go lower. Some programs (FHA, VA) also have wider tolerance than the conventional space. Don’t disqualify yourself; call us with your situation and we’ll tell you straight whether there’s a path.

FHA loan limits are set per county by HUD and update each year — for example, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties allow higher FHA limits than rural counties like Citrus or Marion. Conforming (conventional) limits are set by FHFA at a national baseline plus high-cost area adjustments. Construction and manufactured loans inherit limits from whichever base program you’re using. For a county-specific lookup of current FHA and conforming limits, use our Florida county loan limits tool.

“Best for” is a quick read on the program’s typical sweet spot — not a hard gate. FHA is best for buyers with lower credit or smaller down payments, but plenty of buyers with strong credit still pick FHA for the high seller concession allowance or the lower DTI bar on multi-units. VA is “best for” veterans because they’re the only ones eligible — but a veteran could still pick conventional if they wanted. Read it as guidance, not a verdict.

The credit floors, down payment minimums, MI structure, and DTI ceilings reflect Black Rock Mortgage’s current published guidelines. Loan limits that change annually (FHA county limits, conforming limits) link to our live county lookup tool. If you spot anything that conflicts with the detail page for a given program, the program detail page is canonical — let us know and we’ll square it up.

FHA is government-insured, lenient on credit (580+), 3.5% down, but the mortgage insurance stays for the life of the loan and there’s a 1.75% upfront funding fee. Best for lower-credit buyers and multi-unit purchases. Conventional needs better credit (620+) but PMI drops automatically at 78% LTV — cheaper long-term if you have decent credit. VA requires veteran or active-duty eligibility. $0 down, no monthly MI, only an upfront funding fee. Almost always the best deal if you’re eligible. The comparison table breaks down all three side-by-side — filter or sort to see how the numbers stack up for your situation.

Click “Details” to read the full program page (eligibility, scenarios, full FAQ), then start a free pre-approval. Pre-approval takes about 24 hours on weekdays and gives you a binding number you can shop with — not an estimate. We do this at no cost; you don’t pay us anything until your loan closes.

See Your Real Numbers, Not Just the Range

Comparison gives you the shape of your options. A pre-approval gives you the actual numbers — your real rate, your real cash-to-close, your real cap. Send us your scenario and we’ll run it across 200+ wholesale lenders, layer in every assistance program you might qualify for, and come back with the cleanest path. Free, no obligation, 24-hour turnaround on weekdays.